Metres and centimetres · Usually met around P2
The metre: measuring and comparing
1 m = 100 cm; use one unit before comparing.
How to do it
Method
1 m = 100 cm; use one unit before comparing
2 m − 150 cm = 200 − 150 = 50 cm
Another way
Count up
150 + 50 = 200
In full
Longer things and distances are measured in metres: 1 m = 100 cm, about as long as a child's arms stretched wide. Short things like a pencil take centimetres; corridors, running tracks and houses take metres. Measuring with a 1 m stick, the number of times it fits is the number of metres, and what is left, less than a metre, goes down in centimetres. To compare, use one unit first: 2 m and 150 cm, 2 m = 200 cm, 200 − 150 = 50, so 2 m is 50 cm longer. Or count up from the shorter: 150 and 50 more is 200.
Worked examples
Have a go first, then open each one for the answer and the working.
Example 1
Each 📏 stands for a metre stick, 1 m long. How long is the rope?
Show the answer and working
Answer: 2 m
1 m fits 2 times: 2 m.
Example 2
🌳 is about 6 □ long (or tall). Which unit goes in □?
- A. $
- B. cm
- C. m
- D. minutes
Choose the right answer
Show the answer and working
Answer: C. m
Long things take metres, short things centimetres: 1 m is about your arms stretched wide.
Example 3
How many centimetres longer is 4 m than 80 cm?
Show the answer and working
Answer: 320 cm
4 m = 400 cm, and 400 − 80 = 320.
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